Radha Mitchell is a Bipolar Badass Cop in A&E’s The Quickening

No, it’s not yet another “Highlander” sequel/reboot or TV series, in case that’s what you were thinking. It’s called “The Quickening”, and it’s a new cop show from A&E (cause, obviously, there isn’t nearly enough cop shows on TV at the moment) set to star Radha Mitchell, known primarily for her movie roles in films like “Silent Hill”, “Surrogates”, and the upcoming “The Crazies” remake. While this will be Mitchell’s first foray onto American TV land as the lead, it won’t be the first time an actress known for her movie work decided to take the leap onto the small screen. She follows in the footsteps of other notable movie leading ladies Kyra Sedgwick (the star of TNT’s cop show “The Closer”) and Holly Hunter (the star of TNT’s other cop show “Saving Grace” — gee, starting to see a pattern here?).

Early reports has Mitchell playing a character name Maggie Bird, a homicide detective assigned to a desk job after her bipolar disorder is revealed to all. Unfortunately for the bad guys, the disorder makes Bird one heck of a cop. On the flip side, and unfortunately for her boyfriends, it also turns her personal life into crap. But hey, it’s Radha Mitchell, so I’m sure plenty of guys will be lining up to give it a try anyway. That’s just how we roll. Mitchell’s Bird will be struggling with taking her meds and leaving a normal life, or catching bad guys while off it. Decisions, decisions.

This isn’t exactly the first time Mitchell has appeared on a regular TV show. Before she left her native Australia to pursue fame and fortune in Hollywood, she did a stint on the Aussie soap “Neighbours”. But then again, who didn’t? Filming on the A&E original show is geared up for a November start date, with the pilot written by Jennifer Salt (FX’s “Nip/Tuck”).

This will be A&E’s third foray into original scripted shows in recent years, after finding limited success with the way-too-moody drama “The Cleaner” and the undercover cop show “The Beast”, starring the late Patrick Swayze.

First wiseass to make fun of my condition gets a cap in their ass, got it?